Bulgaria’s Economy Minister Traicho Traikov has assured that a strategic investor is eyeing the privatization of the state-owned cigarette monopoly Bulgartabac. "There is a strategic investor for Bulgartabac and the bidding will be opened by the end of the autumn,” Traikov disclosed in an interview for Standard daily.

Bulgaria’s Privatization Agency hopes to complete the sale of state-owned cigarette monopoly Bulgartabac in 2010. The privatization procedure has reached a phase in which the state is preparing its sale together with the consultant it picked in February, Citigroup Global Markets Ltd. Citigroup was picked winner after bidding EUR 1.018 million and 1.6% of Bulgartabac’s selling price in case of sale.

Bulgartabac Holding currently operates two cigarette factories compared with nine in 2004 and its market share has shrank to some 40% from 60% a year earlier. The holding still owns a number of commercial brands (The most popular domestic brand is Victory.) Two of the less profitable plants of Bulgartabac holding – in the cities of Plovdiv and Stara Zagora – were sold in 2009 on Sofia Stock Exchange.Bulgartabac sale is part of Bulgaria’s center-right government plans to angle for strategic investors for key majors, such as the tobacco monopoly and a few energy companies, in which the state owns higher than a 50% stake.

The decision was taken earlier this year after the cabinet was urged to sell on the stock exchange shares in companies, which are part of the Bulgarian Energy Holding, in a bid to put the local capital market back on track.

June 25, 2010 - Currently pregnant women are asked if they smoke by midwives and GPs (general practitioners) but the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) of the United Kingdom's (UK) National Health Service (NHS) (an independent organisation responsible for providing national guidance on promoting good health and preventing and treating ill health) wants this to go further.

The organisation has recommended that all pregnant women should have their breath measured for carbon monoxide levels when they book in with a midwife. This would establish which women smoke and provide an added incentive for them to quit, the guidance said. Also for non-smokers it may highlight that the woman is unknowingly exposed to high levels of carbon monoxide from second hand smoke, a faulty boiler or car fumes. The guidance is likely to prove controversial among pregnant women who may resent so much testing by health authorities and believe that if they say they are a non-smoker, they might not be believed.

Smoking during pregnancy can increase the risk of miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth and sudden unexpected death in infancy, known as cot death. Exposure to smoke in the womb is also associated with psychological problems in childhood such as attention and hyperactivity problems. Meanwhile, children of parents who smoke tend to suffer from more respiratory problems like asthma or bronchitis and have problems of the ear, nose and throat, compared to children in non-smoking households. Nearly half of all children in the UK are exposed to tobacco smoke at home, the guidance said.The guidance says that women who smoke and are either pregnant or have recently given birth should be offered a range of options to help them quit, including automatic referral to stop-smoking services and sensitive and non-judgemental support by professionals.

The guidance also recommends training for staff and says caution should be used when prescribing pregnancy women with nicotine replacement therapy such as gum or patches.

Jane Brewin, Chief Executive of baby charity Tommy’s, said: "The sooner women who are pregnant can give up smoking, the better. Every baby deserves the best start in life and those born to smokers tend be smaller and weaker than other infants. However, it’s important pregnant women feel supported if they make the decision to quit, and are aware of the stop smoking services available to them."

Rosie Dodds, senior public policy officer for the National Childbirth Trust, said: "We welcome these guidelines as long as they are offered to women in a positive, and non-judgemental way. As long as women are listened too, they could be offered as supportive intervention. Any measure that helps women to give up smoking can only be a good thing for them and their baby."

A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "We welcome the publication of these new guidelines. Smoking in pregnancy is a major public health concern posing risks to both mother and baby. We want the NHS to use this guidance to develop the best possible services for pregnant women.

The Partido Popular however criticised the proposals for lacking ambition in the protection of health. The current draft of the legislation would clear smoke out of all bars, restaurants and leisure facilities, but would allow smoking in stadiums, bullrings and on terraces.

Also excluded from the legislation are some hotel rooms, smokers clubs and spaces where people are held against their will, such as jails and psychiatric institutions.

Minister for Health, Trinidad Jiménez, repeated her wish to see the legislation come into effect in January next year. She said the unanimous support showed ‘political, parliamentary and social maturity’, and said the climate was ‘very favourable’ to go ‘even further and be more ambitious’, in order to reach an important public health goal.

June 24, 2010 - The Massachusetts Senate voted Thursday, June 24th to ban smoking in casinos as part their push to license three of the resort-style gambling venues. The 24-15 vote removes a portion of the bill that would have allowed casinos to set aside up to a quarter of their gambling floor as a smoking section, provided they install "appropriate ventilation so as to minimize the effect of the smoke on the nondesignated areas."

The Senate resumed debate Thursday on its bill to create three casino resorts including one for a region defined as the four counties of Western Massachusetts. The Senate is scheduled for a final vote on the bill on Friday, June 25th.

During Thursday’s debate, the Senate voted to approve an amendment by Sen. Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge, that would require casinos to abide by the state’s law banning smoking at indoor work places. The amendment eliminates a provision in the Senate bill that would have allowed casinos to designate 25 percent of gaming space for smoking.

Opponents argued that a smoking ban would put the state’s casinos at a competitive disadvantage with casinos in Connecticut and racinos in Rhode Island, which currently allow smoking. “This is the nanny state of all nanny states,” said Senate Minority Leader Richard R. Tisei, R-Wakefield. “We want to make this a politically correct casino,” Tisei added. “It’s not going to work.” Supporters said workers at casinos need to be protected from second-hand smoke. “Second hand smoke will not remain within the arbitrary designation,” said Sen. Susan C. Fargo, D-Lincoln. “You can’t ventilate a designated smoking area.”A study commissioned by the Senate to look at the potential revenues from casinos in Massachusetts said three slot machine parlors in Delaware lost more than 11 percent in revenue in 2003 after the state banned smoking. The report also noted that in the years following the ban, revenues rebounded to pre-ban levels. Atlantic City banned smoking in the city's 11 casinos in 2008, but repealed the ban a month after it went into effect because of complaints by casinos.

A six-member panel from the House and the Senate is expected to be named to settle differences in the two casino bills. A compromise bill would be sent to Gov. Deval L. Patrick, who supports casino resorts but is opposed to slots at the tracks.

On a voice vote, the Senate also approved an amendment by Sen. Stephen J. Buoniconti, D-West Springfield, that would require companies to open a casino within three years after winning a license, with certain exceptions. Violators would face a $100 million fine and license revocation.

Commenting on this campaign, Dr. Wael Kaawach, Chief Executive Officer, Healthcare development holding company, and orthopedic surgery consultant at Harvard University, said:"In launching this campaign, the HDH is driven by its believe in its social role and responsibility to educate the local community about the health risks of smoking, especially as the Kingdom is ranked fourth in the world in the number of smokers, who account for about 30% of its population."

Dr. Kaawach also highlighted that HDH seeks through this campaign to reach young Saudi men and women who represent the majority of Saudi society, where more than 60 percent of its citizens are under the age of twenty-five-years of age. And expressed his hope that this campaign will contribute in the education of the community in the dangers of smoking and its negative consequences, which will lead to the cooperation of relevant authorities, of the official and governmental bodies, to enact strict laws prohibiting the sale of cigarettes to those under the age of eighteen, and enforcing a ban on smoking in public areas.

The campaign, which lasts about two months, focuses on finding effective methods to prevent this phenomenon, and to raise awareness in the Saudi society about the dangerous effects of smoking. It also addresses decision makers to enact laws prohibiting the sale of cigarette and tobacco products to those under the age of eighteen, and calls to popularize the Mecca and Medina initiative in the rest of Saudi cities, where it is forbidden in the two holy cities to sell cigarette or smoke in public.The first phase of the awareness campaign has been launched by Fulstop agency, by broadcasting a series of TV ads on the MBC channels, targeting young people who are, under peer pressure, are tempted to experiment with smoking. It also targets parents and caregivers who could contribute, unintentionally, in enticing their children towards this bad habit.

Dr. Wael Kaawach added: "HDH is planning to launch more initiatives after this campaign, in coordination with the Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia, which is doing its best in establishing a series of health centers to quit smoking. We are also looking forward to cooperating with other concerned government agencies, in order to curtail this negative phenomenon, and its dire health and economical consequences."

Dr McCool co-supervised master's degree research by Lisa Webb in which 80 students aged 14 or 15 from six Auckland schools were interviewed about their attitudes to smoking, smokers, tobacco packaging and plain packets. The Heart Foundation-funded study found the teenagers considered the plain packets they were shown to be dull, but said they enhanced the impact of the graphic health warnings. "These perceptions were transferred to the act of cigarette smoking as an unattractive or uncool behaviour," the researchers said. The teenagers thought plain packaging would remove the "purpose" of smoking. It then became simply a "bad habit" rather than a cool and rebellious behaviour".

Many submitters to the Maori affairs select committee's tobacco inquiry have urged the MPs [members of parliament] to recommend the New Zealand Government impose plain packaging on the industry among a range of new tobacco control policies.

Otago University marketing expert Professor Janet Hoek said plain packaging "would be a very powerful measure to decrease the attractiveness of smoking". "When you ask young smokers, a lot say they thought smoking was cool. A lot also regret it when they become addicted. Ninety per cent of adult smokers regret it."The Auckland study found that although the present graphic warnings - some of which show body parts diseased from smoking - were designed to prompt adult smokers to quit, they also led teenagers to view smokers as undesirable, prompting descriptions like "addicted", "lacking in common sense" and "social outcasts".

But the teenagers were confused by the health messages appearing on brightly coloured packets alongside brand imagery, and the researchers said this blunted the effect of the warnings.

Exposed to secondhand smoke as a child..June 24, 2010 - Lynda Mitchell, 52, is dying from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) , but has never smokes and has always despised tobacco. Lynda: I'd get up in the morning and the first thing that would hit me when I walked down the stairs was the vile smell of smoke. I would cough and cough until I was nearly sick. Nobody realised the devastating effects of smoking 50 years ago, they just thought it was fashionable.

As I got older the information started to filter down about how smoking is bad for you and I was desperate for her to stop as a teenager. When mum [mother] realised what I had she stopped smoking indoors, but that was the 90s really. The damage was already done. I was finished.'

She added: 'I'm proof that second hand smoking can kill. Your lungs aren't fully formed until you're 25. People are killing their children with second hand smoke (passive, environmental tobacco smoke, SHS, ETS, involuntary). They know absolutely and categorically - the evidence is out there - that they're killing their children. One cigarette in your car, even with the window down, is like forcing a child to spend an evening in a nightclub full of smokers. Lynda is now backing a campaign by the British Lung Foundation to ban smoking in cars where passengers are under 18.

Lynda was officially diagnosed with COPD in 2003, but doctors believe she had been suffering from the condition since the 1980s. The disease is a chronic combination of bronchitis and emphysema caused by noxious particles or gas that trigger an inflammatory response in the lungs. As the air passages become narrower and eventually become fixed lung capacity is diminished making the simple act of breathing impossible. The disease has left Lynda with only 22 per cent function in her lungs and she relies on oxygen 24 hours a day to breathe.

Lynda also takes an astonishing course of 20 to 25 medications everyday, including painkillers and steroids, to protect the little bit of lung capacity she has left.She cannot dress, wash, or even make a cup of tea by herself as she gets too exhausted, and relies on husband Sean, 52, and daughter Amy, 24, to help her live.The disease is terminal. Doctors cannot give her a precise prognosis, but she will eventually die from the disease.

I am not trying to make parents give up smoking all together, I just want people to be aware of the affect it can have on other peoples lives. I am dying a very horrid, very slow death, please don't let the same happen to your children.

Lynda's stepfather Ray Evans, who joined the family when she was two, passed away in 1990 from lung cancer at the age of 60. Her mother June, now 72, is currently suffering from emphysema and was diagnosed with aggressive skin cancer two years ago.

Case report. We report a case of self-administration of 75 sachets of moist snuff rectally in a previously healthy, 42-year-old man. He presented with symptoms of nausea, discomfort, and dizziness. He had dry and warm skin, a pulse rate of 53 bpm, a mean arterial blood pressure of 135 mmHg and fluctuations in consciousness.

The patient was treated with mechanical ventilation because of respiratory insufficiency. No specific anti-nicotinergic treatment was given. Plasma levels of the nicotine metabolite cotinine were 8,691 μg/L 7 h after admittance and 9,814 μg/L after 12 h. Levels of cotinine in the urine were above >50,000 μg/L. The patient developed a mild pneumonia, but he was uneventfully extubated after 12 h of mechanical ventilation. All physiological parameters were restored and he was discharged from hospital after 36 h.

Conclusion. Excessive rectal administration of moist snuff may be life threatening. Patients may require intensive care. Long-term sequelae were not seen in this case.

June 23, 2010 - Some 90% of the taxis operating in Osaka Prefecture will introduce a smoking ban from July, a local transport bureau and a taxi association said.

Osaka, which has the second-largest number of taxis after Tokyo, will become the 40th of Japan’s 47 prefectures to prohibit smoking inside taxis, with about 20,000 taxis, belonging to local taxi associations, set to become smoke-free with the decision.

While some resisted the move out of fear it could drive away customers, already more than 5,000 taxis in the prefecture are operating smoke-free. As of this month, taxis in seven other prefectures—Hokkaido, Aomori, Iwate, Wakayama, Tottori, Yamaguchi and Nagasaki—have not banned smoking, according to the Osaka Taxi Association.Reference: Most Osaka taxis to ban smoking from July, JapanToday.com, 6/20/2010.

"With this strategic integration, PMI will further ensure the sustainability of its leaf supply in Brazil, improve cost efficiencies and enable us to better align leaf supply and demand," said Martin King, Senior Vice President, Operations, PMI.

"We are confident that through our direct involvement with the farmers, as well as the wider tobacco growing communities, we can have a greater impact on improving their long term economic sustainability," he added.

Under the new leaf procurement structure, PMB will offer employment to more than 200 employees, most of them agronomy specialists, and will acquire related assets in Southern Brazil. AOB and ULT will continue to process the tobacco grown by PMB contracted farmers and also supply additional PMI leaf purchase requirements.

The transactions, which are subject to approval by the Brazilian competition law authority CADE, are expected to be completed by the end of the third quarter 2010."I don't think this tells us whether PMI is buying more or less leaf in Brazil. It may be that they just want a direct relationship with farmers, like they have in the U.S.," said Blake Brown, a North Carolina State University economist who specializes in tobacco. "With the currency situation, I would be surprised if buyers shift towards Brazil."

Currency swings in Brazil in the past have had a big impact on leaf dealers like Universal, which reported $50 million of currency-related losses in the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2009. Lower currency costs boosted its results in the following fiscal year.

Philip Morris International has been cutting back leaf purchases in the U.S., but that's probably because of a drop in demand in Europe, Brown said.

Universal and Alliance, meanwhile, said they would continue to process Brazilian leaf for Philip Morris International. Processing traditionally has been a profitable business -- and also less risky than contracting and financing growers. For Universal, the deal involves about 20 percent of its current volume.

Alliance One Chief Executive Robert E. Harrison said the agreement means a long-term processing agreement while reducing the company's working capital requirement for its Brazilian operation.

Philip Morris Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda PMB), with business headquarters in Curitiba, has approximately 2,400 employees in its offices and facilities around the country and in its factory in Santa Cruz do Sul. PMB is the second largest cigarette company in Brazil, manufacturing and distributing leading international brands such as Marlboro and L&M, as well as local brands such as Shelton and Dallas.

June 23, 2010 - Bandar Seri Begawan estimated population 140000 (as of 2010), is the capital and largest city of the Sultanate of Brunei) - Designated smoking areas would help to reduce the number of people smoking in public areas, and the number of smokers being fined for breaching the Tobacco Order 2005, according to members of the public.

The Borneo Bulletin went out to interview citizens and residents around the country to obtain their views on the recent reinforcement of the Tobacco Order 2005, and there seemed to be a shared opinion that designated smoking areas would help the situation.

Hadi, a student said, "I think it's a good idea, but there should be specified smoking areas, and the fines for first-time offenders are a bit high. I think that people should get a warning, not a fine.

If they don't want people to smoke then why are cigarettes still being sold?"One smoker who was fined by the Tobacco Control Unit for smoking in public said: "It's unfair because other countries have fines for littering but people can still smoke. Instead of an instant fine on the spot, they should give us warning beforehand. There should be designated areas for smoking."

A sales representative, meanwhile, said, "It's fair but I think they shouldn't make it so harsh because it's basically annoying the smokers.

"There should be smoking areas, because it would help to not alienate smokers from everyone else."

A member of the public who wished to be referred to as Anonymous H said: "I don't think it's fair without providing designated smoking areas for smokers. Instead, put up signs saying `No Smoking' and signs that say 'You will be fined' and so on. They're not giving us fair warning. Signs need to be put up saying where smokers can smoke. When they enforce it, they should warn us first and tell us they're going to start enforcing it, and let us know where we can and can't smoke."

George, a tourist in the country, said: "I think that it's a bit over the top. It's not OK to smoke inside public buildings and entrances, but outside there's plenty of room for everyone.

"At the -moment people don't know where they're allowed to smoke. It's not good to fine people when they don't know when they're doing something wrong," he added. "I think that tourists should obey the law just like locals, though it does make it more difficult.

"I suggest having designated smoking areas with signs that show it, and signs in areas where you cannot, with the information saying that there is a fine of 150 dollars for smoking in a certain location."

Nabilah, a student who does not smoke said, "Honestly I don't think it's useful, because people are still going to buy the cigarettes regardless, and they're going to continue smoking anyway.

"The non-smokers should walk away, they have a choice of going inside or outside the restaurant. Smokers go outside. There might as well be a smoking zone and a non-smoking zone, so they could then make their own decision."

June 23, 2010 - As expected United States [government] rejected on Tuesday, June 22nd a call by Indonesia for a World Trade Organization (WTO) panel to rule on their dispute over the U.S. ban on clove-flavoured cigarettes. Under WTO rules, the defendant in a dispute is allowed to block the creation of a panel at the first request, but cannot obstruct it a second time. Indonesia's request is likely to go through at the next meeting on July 20, 2010.Directly related news briefs:

A U.S. official said the ban did not discriminate against any country and Indonesia's request for a panel to rule on the dispute was premature as a scientific committee set up under the law to examine tobacco products would report by March next year.

Clove-flavoured cigarettes, known as kretek, dominate cigarette consumption in Indonesia, the world's fifth biggest tobacco market, but only small numbers are exported, and the unflavoured sort, or "white sticks", are gaining in popularity.U.S. government surveys showed that menthol cigarettes accounted for 44 percent of cigarettes consumed by young people and 28 percent of all consumption, said Indonesian diplomat Nurlaila Nur Muhammad.

Clove cigarettes accounted for less than 0.05 percent of cigarettes smoked by young people, and 0.09 percent of all consumption, before the ban, she said.

The United States imported $15.2 million worth of kretek cigarettes in 2008, of which 99 percent came from Indonesia, according to U.S. data cited by Indonesian officials. Since the ban, sales have fallen to zero.

"In many parts of my country the main source of income and employment is the production of tobacco, clove and cigarettes," Muhammad said.

"Indeed, well over 6 million Indonesians depend directly or indirectly on clove cigarette production to put food on the table, clothes on their children's backs and day's wages in their pocket."

June 22, 2010 - Global economic woes and the worldwide spread of smoking bans are taking their toll on Cuba's famous cigar industry, with the just-completed harvest of the country's finest tobacco down 14 percent over 2009, local media said on Monday, June 21st.

In westernmost Pinar del Rio, home of Cuba's most famous tobacco, the harvest came in at 22.4 million leaves, down from 26 million in 2009, according to Guerrillero, the province's Communist party weekly.

Cuba's premium cigars dominate the world market with 70 percent of sales. That jealously guarded market share excludes the United States, where Cuba's cigars are banned under the 48-year-old U.S. trade embargo against the communist-led island.

Domestic demand for lower-quality cigars, which cost as little as a few cents and are made from tobacco grown elsewhere in the country, showed no sign of slowing.About 300 million were produced last year, compared with 278 million in 2008, the government said.

Some 200,000 private farmers and family members depend on growing and curing the precious leaf under contract with the government. Tens of thousands of workers earn their living hand rolling the crop into the famous "Habanos" or "Some 200,000 private farmers and family members depend on growing and curing the precious leaf under contract with the government. Tens of thousands of workers earn their living hand rolling the crop into the famous "Habanos" or "Puros" for export."

June 22, 2010 - Asian tobacco growers are meeting in Indonesia for a two-day summit aimed at formulating a strategy to fight against the adoption of a ban on flavored cigarettes under the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The Indonesian Tobacco Alliance (Amti) and the International Tobacco Growers Association, a US-based nonprofit growers association, on Sunday, June 20th urged the Indonesian government and the governments of neighboring countries not to adopt Articles 9 and 10 of the framework that effectively ban flavored tobacco products.

Article 9 of the FCTC deals with the testing, measuring and regulation of the contents and emissions of tobacco products, and Article 10 with disclosure to governments and the public of such contents and emissions. These are important components of tobacco control policy, but the issues raised by each are complex.

Sudaryanto, the chairman of Amti, which organized the meeting, said banning flavored cigarettes could cost Indonesian growers up to $450 million per year and threaten millions of jobs.

It comes after a recent recommendation by the World Health Organization (WHO) to ban ingredients such as clove and other flavours in tobacco products. Asian tobacco growers say if the WHO ruling is enforced it could threaten millions of tobacco farmers' jobs.Indonesia is the world's largest producer of clove cigarettes and is particularly concerned about the move. Tobacco growers from India, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia are taking part in the summit in Jakarta.

It is the first of its kind and members hope that the Asia Tobacco Forum will prove to be an effective lobby group for their goals. Their biggest concern is how to deal with the WHO's recent recommendation to ban flavoured tobacco products.Job losses

According to the association of Asian tobacco growers, the ruling could put an estimated 50 million jobs in the region at risk.

In Indonesia, most of the tobacco companies out-source the growing of the plant to small farmers, who depend on the industry for their livelihoods.

Abdus Setiawan, head of the Indonesian Tobacco Farmers' Association, said 93% of the cigarettes made in Indonesia are kretek clove cigarettes. "This will mean a loss of jobs, this will mean a problem with the government's poverty alleviation programmes, because a lot of these farmers are depending only on those products," he said.

June 22, 2010 - The Council of Ministers urged the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) to ban smoking at all airports and their facilities in the Kingdom on Monday, June 21st. It also advised GACA to impose a fine of SR200 (53.35 USD) on people who violate the new regulations.

The Cabinet meeting, chaired by Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, approved the recommendations of the 150-member Shoura Council.

Although the Kingdom passed anti-smoking regulations in August 2003, the habit is growing among its population. There are six million smokers in the country who puff away SR8 (2.13 USD) billion every year. According to one report, smoking-related diseases kill at least 33 people in the Kingdom each month.Saudi Arabia ranks fourth in the world in terms of cigarette consumption and 41st in terms of population. As many as 13 billion cigarettes are imported into the Kingdom every year. About 10 percent of the Kingdom’s total smokers are women and 19.3 percent are teenagers. Studies have shown that 13 to 15 percent of young men and women live with smokers and are subjected to passive smoking.

June 22, 2010 - An increase in tobacco taxes and a plan to collect taxes from cigarettes sold on American Indian reservations was approved Monday, June 21st by New York State lawmakers as Albany slowly pieces together a budget that is now more than two months late. For the cigarette-tax proposal, the Assembly approved the measure 77-64. The Senate approved the measure 32-29, with all Republicans voting no and with one absentee, Sen. Thomas Morahan, R-New City, who is battling leukemia.

The tax increases and collection plan was approved as leaders grapple with passing a spending plan for the 2010-11 fiscal year that was due on April 1 and close a $9.2 billion deficit.The plan includes a $1.60 per-pack-increase on cigarettes, raising the state tax to $4.35 — the highest in the country — and bringing the retail cost of a pack of cigarettes in most places to well more than $10. The average price in New York City, which imposes its own cigarette taxes, will be even higher, nearly $11 a pack.

Those who prefer other tobacco products will also be forced to pay significantly more. The tax on smokeless tobacco will more than double, to $2 an ounce from 96 cents an ounce, starting on Aug. 1. And the wholesale tax on cigars, dips and other kinds of tobacco will rise to 75 percent from 46 percent. The increases take effect July 1, 2010. Combined, the plan is expected to add $440 million to the state's coffers.

The cigarette-tax plan would also allow the state to begin collecting taxes from the sale of cigarettes on American Indian reservations to non-tribal citizens, a revenue source that is expected to bring about $150 million. Cigarettes sold to tribe members would not be taxed.

June 22, 2010 - FDA's Center for Tobacco Products (CTR) has scheduled a Web-based public meeting on Wednesday, June 30, from 9 AM to 5 PM to discuss issues regarding the development of an enforcement action plan to enforce restrictions on promotion and advertising of menthol and other cigarettes to youth, including youth in minority communities.

The purpose of this meeting is to gather data, information and views from any interested parties, including, but not limited to, public health organizations, minority community groups and leaders, other stakeholders with demonstrated expertise and experience in serving minority communities, groups serving youth, patient groups, advertising agencies, the regulated industry, and other interested parties.

The company believes that these are the only applications for modified risk products that have been filed with the FDA to date.

Stonewall-BDL™, like ARIVA-BDL™, is a dissolvable tobacco lozenge with wintergreen flavoring. The product is made with flue-cured tobacco that contains levels of tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) that are below detectable limits ("BDL") by most current standards of measure. TSNAs have been identified in scientific literature since the early 1950s as one of the most deadly and abundant groups of carcinogens in tobacco and its smoke. Achieving this reduction, known within Star as "ZNT" (zero-nitrosamine tobacco) was accomplished by new work on the StarCured® tobacco curing technology that originally was developed in the 1990s. This innovation is the subject of a patent application filed in December 2008. A recent article by Rickert et al. (Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 2009;53(2):121-33) reported total TSNA levels in currently marketed popular moist snuff and "pouch" tobacco products that ranged from 8,814 – 14,557 parts per billion. This range is 1000 times greater than the levels measured in Stonewall-BDL™, as outlined in the company's submission.Ariva®, launched in 2001, was developed for adult smokers who cannot or choose not to smoke. Stonewall Hard Snuff®, launched in mid-2003, is an alternative for adults who use traditional smokeless tobacco products or who identify themselves as "heavy smokers". Over the past nine years the company has learned that Ariva® customers range in age from 30-70, and more than half of them are women. Stonewall Hard Snuff® purchasers range in age from 25-65 and show two major patterns of tobacco use. Customers who are looking for an alternative to moist snuff are largely male, while roughly 30-40% of those who purchase the products as an alternative to "heavy" daily cigarette smoking are female. According to callers to the company's consumer call center, the majority of purchasers are concerned about continued smoking.

June 21, 2010 - Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) will host a live audio webcast at www.pmi.com of presentations made by senior management and Q&A sessions at the PMI 2010 Investor Day, which will be held at its Operations Center in Lausanne, Switzerland, on June 23 and 24, 2010.

The presentations and Q&A sessions will be webcast live both days, in local Swiss time, in a listen-only mode beginning on Wednesday, June 23, 2010, at www.pmi.com approximately 9:00 a.m. and concluding at approximately 5:00 p.m. that day. The webcast will resume on June 24, 2010, at approximately 8:40 a.m. and conclude at approximately 10:45 a.m.

An archive of the webcast will be made available until Friday, July 23, 2010, at http://www.pmi.com/investors at the start of each presentation.

June 21, 2010 - To comply with legislation passed by the US Congress and signed into law by the President, cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products will be subject to new mailing regulations effective 29 June 2010.

The main goal for passage of the PACT Act: to Protect Our Children - Make it illegal to use the U.S. Postal Service to deliver any form of tobacco product.. FedEx, UPS and DSL — have bowed to state pressure and have refused to ship tobacco products. Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer pressured UPS and DHL Worldwide Express to stop delivering cigarettes to individuals anywhere in the United States in 2005. FedEx agreed to do the same a year later. (Ban tobacco from the mail, Star Bulletin, posted 3/17/2010)

With only a few limited exceptions, the Postal Service will no longer be allowed to accept or transport packages containing cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products. The general mailability ban will extend to cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco and smokeless tobacco. The prohibition does not include cigars.

Shipments entirely within Alaska and Hawaii will continue, subject to certain labeling and acceptance requirements.The law does permit infrequent lightweight shipments by age-verified adults to recipients who are at least the age of majority for purchase of tobacco. Shipments between businesses in the tobacco industry will also be permitted, as well as cigarettes sent to consumers age 21 and above for testing or public health purposes.

Most shipments will require photo identification and age verification consistent with the minimum age requirements in the locality of destination.

With the exception of shipments entirely within Alaska and Hawaii, shipments are permitted only via Express Mail and, with the exception of shipments from the United States to APO/FPO/DPO destinations, will be delivered using “hold for pickup” service at the destination Post Office.

June 21, 2010 - As new U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) regulations kick in this week, the FDA is already questioning one supplier's tactics after redesigning its packaging. Regulators demanded that cigarette maker Philip Morris USA (PM USA) turn over all market research material on Marlboro Lights, citing concern over an advertisement for the brand, reported Reuters. In a letter to PM USA parent company Altria Group Inc., the FDA said it was concerned about advertisements, or "onserts," attached to packs of Marlboro Lights.

A PM USA onsert that drew FDA attention reads: "Your Marlboro Lights pack is changing. But your cigarette stays the same. In the future, ask for 'Marlboro in the gold pack'."

The FDA said, "By stating that only the packaging is changing, but the cigarettes will stay the same, the onsert suggests that Marlboro in the gold pack will have the same characteristics as Marlboro Lights, including any mistaken attributes associated with the 'light' cigarettes." It added, "Although the onsert includes some disclaimer language, Congress found that disclaimers have been ineffective in eliminating mistaken beliefs regarding 'low tar' and 'light' cigarettes."

Richmond, Va.-based Altria must submit by July 30 all materials related to the marketing or sale of Marlboro Lights, including themes, creative recommendations and dissemination strategies, the FDA said. Altria spokesperson Bill Phelps said, "We received the letter...and we're reviewing it and we will respond."

Credit Suisse analyst Thilo Wrede said in a research note to investors, "We think that [PM USA] should be allowed to communicate packaging changes to its smokers, but the FDA request serves as a reminder that the regulatory pressure is maybe bigger than initially expected."The FDA noted in a separate letter to retailers of tobacco that the "new legal restrictions apply only to manufacturers; they do not prohibit retailers from selling tobacco products with the descriptors 'light,' 'low,' 'mild,' or similar descriptors that were manufactured before June 22, 2010." (Letter to Retailers on Tobacco Products Labeled or Advertised with the Descriptors “Light,” “Low,” “Mild,” or Similar Descriptors)

"As the FDA acknowledges in the letter to retailers, there is no time limit for retailers to sell through their existing inventory of these tobacco products labeled with these descriptive terms. Retailers should simply continue to use good retailing practices of rotating stock which will reduce the length of time after June 22 that these tobacco products labeled with descriptive words remain on store shelves," said the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO) in its most recent issue of NATO E-News.

Other tobacco regulatory activity: The U.S. Postal Service announced that it will no longer accept packages containing tobacco products starting June 29, 2010 thereby following its obligations under the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act. With only a few limited exceptions, the Postal Service will no longer be allowed to accept or transport packages containing cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products. The general mailability ban will extend to cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco and smokeless tobacco. The prohibition does not include cigars. Other delivery services like FedEx, UPS and DHL are also no longer making cigarette shipments, which significantly limits the legal shipping options for online cigarette sellers. (U.S. PACT Law does effect June 29, 2010..

"Online sales are only a tiny fraction of the total tobacco sales in the U.S., but this event is another example for the increasing pressure on the industry from Washington," said Wrede.

"We expect a much more intense debate about the industry's intentions for adding menthol to cigarettes, which could lead to a more general discussion of menthol's role in underage smoking initiation. We continue to see the underage initiation argument as the most promising angle of attack for proponents of a menthol ban," Wrede added.